


amortentia

by rosieskangaroo



Category: ITZY (Band)
Genre: F/F, Harry Potter - Freeform, LGBTQ Themes, gay nerds, they're gay!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-08
Updated: 2020-04-15
Packaged: 2021-02-27 13:27:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 16,105
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22177792
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rosieskangaroo/pseuds/rosieskangaroo
Summary: amortentia: the most powerful love potion in the world; a powerful and highly dangerous potion.An AU in which Shin Ryujin goes to a Halloween party dressed as a Gryffindor, and meets the only other Slytherin at the party- the new girl Choi Lia.
Relationships: Choi Jisu | Lia/Shin Ryujin
Comments: 10
Kudos: 95





	1. Friday, October 30th

**chapter one: friday, october 30th**

“I told you, I’m not going.” Ryujin rolled herself into her blanket on the couch, watching Yeji roll her eyes and cross her arms. 

“You bought a costume and you’re not going to go?” Yeji asked, adjusting the zipper on her debatably sexy kangaroo onesie. “Come on, it’s Halloweekend.”

The first thing that Ryujin knew for sure that ever since she began attending Atlas Academy, her and Yeji were inseparable. Whether it was at lacrosse practice, outside of class, or even in their dorm, they did everything together. Yeji was the Class President- outgoing, cheerful, and determined. But Ryujin was tough as nails- even though she had a soft side that she wouldn’t dare let anyone know about. It was harder for her to make friends. But it was even harder with her to open up to others.

“That’s a dumb name,” Ryujin chuckled, sorting through her DVD collection under their coffee table. “I’ll just re-watch Goblet of Fire. They really know how to throw a party at Hogwarts.”

The second thing that Ryujin knew for sure was that she loved the Harry Potter series. The books, the movies, the theme park, the stage play- her room was decorated in minimalist movie posters and replica props. But, she didn’t want to be seen as dorky to her teammates, so she hid her secret passion within the walls of her and Yeji’s dorm. Ryujin was okay with keeping her love of the Wizarding world to herself. Maybe if she was lucky, she’d get Yeji to watch a movie with her or even take a sorting hat quiz.

“Ryujin, you’re coming with me whether you like it or not,” Yeji sat down next to her, prying the other girl out of her blanket cocoon. “You spent a ton of money on those Gryffindor robes, and you’re not going to wear them out? It’s your favorite holiday!”

“I’m just not in the mood.” Ryujin sighed. Earlier today, she got the courage to finally ask out her crush, Mina Myoui. But Mina likes the team captain, Son Chaeyoung. Ryujin was crushed. Girls don’t want nerdy athletes, they want Son Chaeyoung and her stupid Halloweekend parties at her off-campus house.

“Chaeyoung likes you, and she’s not going to be a happy camper if you don’t come out tonight.” Yeji comforted her best friend. “Besides, you and I know damn well that Chaeyoung can’t stay on one girl for long.”

Ryujin laughed with Yeji, putting the remote down. Maybe she could go for a little bit? Chaeyoung was her teammate, after all.

“Maybe we can go just for an hour or two?” Ryujin offered, earning a bear hug from Yeji.

“Ryujin, you will not regret this!” Yeji squealed, rummaging through a plastic shopping bag. “Also, I got you this.”

Yeji revealed a maroon and yellow headband- the Gryffindor colors. Ryujin smiled shyly, as her roommate adjusted the accessory onto her head.

“You’re gonna be the belle of the Yule Ball.” Yeji joked, mentally giving herself a high five for convincing her roommate.

⌁☍

It was Lia’s third day at Atlas Academy and she had already lost her bus card. She meant to load her passes on her ID card, but after flushing it down the toilet she decided she should just ask her counselor for a new one. But, her roommates had another idea- they were going to walk down the hill to a party downtown, being thrown by the Lacrosse team. Unfortunately, their costumes didn’t make the trek enjoyable in the cold, fall weather.

“Faster!” Yuna called out, running in her female cop costume. Her heels clicked along the sidewalk as she maintained her balance. “It’s going to get crowded really quick, so we have to get there early.”

“Calm down! It’s not like they’ll run out of drinks.” Chaeryeong laughed, adjusting her top hat with rabbit ears. She decided to go as the Mad Hatter, wearing a cute Victorian British dress she managed to cut short at her knees.

“I hope someone recognizes my costume.” Lia admits, adjusting her Slytherin necktie. “I got these robes from when I went to Universal this summer.”

“You look so cute!” Yuna smiled. “Are you excited for your first Atlas party?”

“Honestly, I’m a little nervous guys,” Lia took a deep breath. “The kids here seem really mature.”

“But this is the coolest school ever! I promise,” Chaeryeong smiled. “So, are you going to try out for the dance team next week? We could use someone like you!”

“Yeah, right!” Yuna interjected. “She’s joining Choir with me. I bet she sings beautifully- if she would sing for us, you know…”

Lia had always been a quiet girl- and she didn’t mind it at all. She preferred to escape in the movies she watched and the books she read. Sometimes, she felt like a wallflower in her own life- just blending in with her surroundings. But, this was a new school. She had the chance to completely reinvent herself with her new, outgoing roommates. She had the chance to forget about her old life in Canada, and make new memories. At least, that’s what she hoped for on the car ride down to Atlas. 

“I’ll decide soon, but I just want to get out and see the town this weekend!” Lia remarked, hiding her wand in her knee-high socks. “This city seems so cool.”

“We’ll be your spirit guides!” Yuna agreed, pretending to be a ghost and getting her roommates to laugh.

Lia fake smiled, praying that her anxiety would leave her system when they got to the house party.

⌁☍

“Well, look at this! Number seven decided to show up after all!” Chaeyoung announced, running down the stairs to give her teammates a hug. She was dressed as Jared Leto’s Joker, tattoos and all. “Come in, we’re just setting up the punch now.”

Ryujin followed Yeji upstairs to reveal a massive punch bowl with stacks of solo cups. Their other teammate, Dahyun, was in the back of the room setting up her laptop and turntable.

“HWANG! SHIN!” Dahyun shouted, covered in blue face paint and a fake black goatee. “What’s up? I heard there’s some cheerleaders coming tonight if you guys are interested. Mina’s bringing the girls. And guys. No judgement here.”

“I think we’re good, Dahyun.” Yeji chuckled. “Nice Genie costume!”

“THANKS!” Dahyun was known to be really loud- on and off the field. “Ryujin, what about you? I know a few cheerleaders who’d love that schoolgirl costume.”

“I’m a GRYFFINDOR!” Ryujin groaned.

“Bless you.” Dahyun laughed. “Well, let me know if you need anything. We have snacks for the team so nobody throws up on the carpet again.”

People began to file in after a few minutes, and Dahyun began to blast her Spotify playlist. Yeji got some punch, but Ryujin opted for a solo cup of water. Part of her wanted to go and find Mina, and apologize to her. She began to look around, until she finally found Mina dressed as quite the sexy mummy and her cheerleading friends- only Mina was dancing, no, _grinding_ , with Chaeyoung. Yeji noticed the fake smile fall off of Ryujin’s face.

“Dude-“ Yeji comforted, but Ryujin was already down the hall, walking to the bathroom and lying against the adjacent wall. She wanted to go home. She wished she could be like her captain, but Ryujin felt too many things. She contemplated grabbing a cup or two of alcohol, just to forget what she felt for a while. But first, she remembered that she needed to find a quiet space and just breathe. 

And that’s when she walked in.

She was a little on the shorter side, with long dark brown hair. She had a cute nose, and- the best part in Ryujin’s opinion- she was wearing a Slytherin robe, complete with the tie, robe, skirt, sweater vest, and even a green and silver headband. Ryujin’s eyes couldn’t tear away from the girl. She saw as her friends began to wave to someone, and watched as Yeji approached them slowly. Ryujin decided that now was a better time than ever to take that deep breath, and suck it up. 

She fixed her tie, and flipped her hair as she sniffled and began to confidently walk over to her roommate.

“And here she is!” Yeji introduced. “The best goalie that Atlas Lax has ever seen grace its field, Shin Ryujin!”

“Oh, stop,” Ryujin nervously laughed. “Just call me Ryujin.”

“I’m Shin Yuna! And this is Lee Chaeryeong.” Yuna excitedly smiled, turning to a the girl in the Slytherin robe. She was staring at Ryujin, but Chaeryeong’s hand on her shoulder shook her out of her trance. “And this is our new roommate, Choi Jisu.”

“Yeah, but uh, most people call me Lia.” The girl smiled, nodding her head to her roommates. “It’s really nice to meet you.”

“Likewise.” Ryujin nodded, glancing up and down at Lia’s costume one more time. Shit. She just checked her out. Ryujin met Lia’s gaze, and saw her cheeks begin to turn pink under the multicolored strobe lights.

“Ladies, let’s go get some drinks.” Yeji offered, as Lia’s two roommates excitedly ran away. Ryujin made a mental note to thank her roommate later. 

“Follow me,” Ryujin beckoned to Lia, as the two made their way to Chaeyoung’s balcony. Although it was pretty small, the lacrosse player sat down to give the other girl space to move to the other side. Lia sat down, laughing just a bit. Ryujin smiled back, propping her arm up on her upright knee.

“Favorite book?” Ryujin asked.

“Prisoner of Azkaban.” Lia answered, earning a fist pump from the Gryffindor. “What about you?” 

“Philosopher’s Stone.” Ryujin watched as the girl nodded. “Favorite movie?”

“Goblet of Fire.” Lia told her.

“No way! Me too!” Ryujin exclaimed. “I really like your robes. Where did you get them?”

“I went to the theme park over the summer. I spent my entire paycheck on it.” Lia grabbed the ends of her robe and wrapped herself in them. “Did you make yours?”

“No, but this might sound really weird.” Ryujin closed up.

“Oh, come on! There’s nothing more weird than meeting someone who’s also wearing Hogwarts robes at a house party!” Lia encouraged. “New girls don’t get to judge, trust me.”

“I used my birthday money to get a lady online to make a custom one for me. It even has a wand pocket inside!” Ryujin revealed the sewn pocket, which held her wand down the edge of her robe. “I wanted a wand holster, you see, but that wasn’t super accurate with the lore itself.”

“You seem really passionate about this. It’s cute.” Lia said, making Ryujin blush.

“Well, I don’t really have anybody else to talk to about this kind of stuff.” Ryujin bluntly admitted, putting her robe back on. 

“What about your roommate?” Lia questioned.

“Well, Yeji’s only seen the movies.” Ryujin’s reveal made Lia gasp. “I know, right? And she can get really busy sometimes being Miss Student Body President. She’s my best friend, but I don’t want to be clingy.”

“But, why hide all the best parts of you?” Lia was confused. “Is it because you’re a jock or something?”

“No, it’s because no one really asks.” Ryujin looked into Lia’s eyes. They were brown; and they looked as if something was tinkering behind them- as if Lia was still trying to figure her out. “You ever just feel like footprints on the Marauder’s Map? People see you, and yet they don’t. They see you, but they choose to not acknowledge you. Because they think you’re doing fine.”

“If there was a spell to make everyone happy, then we wouldn’t have such a great story like Harry Potter.” Lia thought out loud.

Ryujin was taken aback at how perceptive the girl was. This was the most pleasant conversation she’s had in a while, and she can’t believe that it’s with a girl this pretty who happens to be wearing Slytherin robes. Ryujin knew that she’d already been shot down one time today, but she figured that there wasn’t a reason to not try. 

“Could I maybe take you out to eat tomorrow?” Ryujin asked, crossing her fingers underneath her robe. She would do anything to know this girl. 

“I would like that,” Lia smiled. Ryujin felt her heart beat fast. Like, Hungarian Horntail loose at the Triwizard Tournament fast. She stood up, grabbing the Slytherin’s hand and pulling her up. The two girls were inches from each other’s face as the song from inside switched. Ryujin watched Lia’s eyes light up as she recognized the melody. It was a Post Malone song.

“Wanna dance?” The Gryffindor smirked, opening the glass door. Lia nodded, and followed her inside.


	2. Saturday, October 31st

** Chapter Two: Saturday, October 31st **

The morning after the party, Lia woke up feeling a little bit better about being at Atlas Academy. She woke up early, and made some store-bought cinnamon rolls that her mom snuck into the mini fridge before she left. Yuna and Chaeryeong came downstairs to see her icing the rolls, fresh out of the oven. She was humming to herself as her phone played her playlist at a low volume.

“What’s all this?” Yuna asked, descending the stairs with an eager Chaeryeong.  
“I made breakfast! It’s the least I could do for you guys.” Lia smiled. “Also, I read that cinnamon rolls make hangovers a little less painful.”

“She’s right,” Chaeryeong nodded, leaning in and grabbing one. “I like her logic, Yuna.”

“You’re right, we are hungover- but we still wanna know what happened with you and Ryujin last night.” Yuna teased, watching Lia tense up. “Spill!”

“We just talked, that’s all,” Lia admitted. “And she also asked to take me out to eat some time today?”

“WHAT?!” Yuna’s mouth opened wide. “Lia, she’s THE Shin Ryujin. Lacrosse players like her are super popular- not to mention they’re like, our only good sports team. You’re not doing too bad for the new girl.”

“What do you guys know about her?” Lia asked.

“She’s the strong, silent type. Kind of surprised she talked to you last night.” Chaeryeong explained. “I think she wants to be intimidating.”

“Don’t worry, she still is,” Lia sighed, grabbing a plate for her breakfast. “She still makes me nervous. I hope it’s in a good way.”

“She is a lax player,” Chaeryeong muttered, getting a hit on the arm from Yuna. “OW! I’m not wrong, am I?”

“Wait, what do you mean?” Lia inquired.

“Well, the older members of the team have been known for hooking up with a lot of girls.” Yuna explained. “But Ryujin’s never done any of that stuff, according to Yeji. In fact, I can’t even remember if she’s had a girlfriend before.”

“I don’t think someone like her would do things like that.” Lia swooned, bumping her volume up and heading to the living room. Chaeryeong followed her, but not before adding an extra cinnamon roll to her plate.

⌁☍

“I want to know more about that girl.” Ryujin told Yeji during the stretching circle at morning lacrosse practice.

“She just moved here, why are you asking me?” Yeji taunted. “After all, you’re the one who walked away with her number last night.”

“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean I’m chill.” Ryujin smiled to herself. “Where’s Chae? We started practice fifteen minutes ago.”

Chaeyoung ran to the field, with noticeable hickeys down her neck. She waved goodbye to a girl in the car that just dropped her off. Mina. Usually, Ryujin would care, but she was in a good mood having met Lia last night. And now that she had the girl’s number, she was ready to take her out to eat and give her the best time.

Ryujin didn’t date. Sure, she dated one girl a while back, but that was before she moved to Europe as part of an exchange student program. Now, Ryujin was kind of okay with hopeless crushes. But Lia? She terrified Ryujin. And yet, there was nothing more that Ryujin wanted than to stare at her and listen to her speak.

“Whoa! Where’d you end up last night?” Dahyun asked her roommate, who shook her head smirking.

“Let’s just say Mina’s a good kisser and leave it at that.” Chaeyoung laughed it off, placing her practice duffel down behind her. “But she’s not lax formal material. Speaking of, I expect for all of you to be there this year. We rented out a nice banquet hall and Coach is allowing all of us to take one guest. Remember- I need your money by Thanksgiving break. If you can’t find a date, come see me after practice. I got some choices for those who need some.”

Ryujin forgot all about the stupid lax banquet. Every year, the team goes to some formal dinner and receives trophies. The school paper comes to take pictures and it’s a pretty big deal to Atlas. But, for the first time, Ryujin was excited for the dumb reception if that meant she could take Lia.

“Alright, let’s do some laps!” Chaeyoung blew her whistle, but called out to Ryujin. “Seven! Can I have a word?”

Ryujin walked over, hands behind her back. Getting closer to Chae, she could only imagine what other horrors her and Mina committed last night.

“Look, Mina told me about your little crush on her, and I just wanted to apologize,” Chaeyoung put her hand on Ryujin’s shoulder. “Bros before hoes, am I right?”

“Actually, I don’t like her like that anymore. Haven’t for a while.” Ryujin laughed it off. “I met a girl last night at the party, and uh, we were vibing. She’s formal material. But, thanks for taking care of her last night bud.”

Chaeyoung laughed it off, zipping her jacket up to cover the marks on her neck.

“Ryujin, I really am sorry.” Chaeyoung confessed. “But, I’m gonna be on your side from now on. Whatever you need, okay?”

Ryujin didn’t trust so easily. But she thanked her team captain and moved on to practice with the others. Chaeyoung’s other roommate, Momo, ran some attacker and goalie drills alongside Ryujin and the other goalie, her friend Heejin. The team was preparing for the State Semifinals for next weekend, and Ryujin would do anything to be the starter goalie for the next match. College scouts would be there, and Ryujin wanted to get a full ride- right after she figures out what she wants to do.

During a five minute water break, Ryujin grabbed her phone and sent Lia a quick message: “ _hey lia! does 5:30 work for you tonight? i should be done with hw and practice by then!_ ” She turned her phone off as Yeji came over, her messages open.

“Okay! I found out that she’s from Canada.” Yeji reported proudly.

“Canada? Like bagged milk and waterfalls and shit?” Ryujin asked. She’s never been to Canada. She wondered if Lia had a Canadian accent.

“Yes, like bagged milk and shit!” Yeji also pulled up a picture. “Also, I think her parents are rich.”

“Most of our parents are-“

“No! She’s like, dummy rich.” Yeji told her roommate. “Apparently she moves around a lot because of her parent’s jobs.”

“Shit, that sucks,” Ryujin commented. “Yeji, why do I keep attracting these type of girls?”

“I think it’s your cool persona.” Yeji joked. “The ladies love you.”

“Oh come on, what’s my name, Chaeyoung?” The two snickered as the team captain admired her neck while talking to some of the older teammates.

⌁☍

“She just texted me!” Lia squealed, waking Yuna up from an unexpected hangover nap. Chaeryeong turned her head from their current Spongebob marathon. 

“What did she say?” Chaeryeong leaned over and read the message. “TONIGHT? SAY YES!!”

“What’s going on?” Yuna groaned as Lia showed her the message from Ryujin. “Oh my God, Lia! Say Yes!”

Lia smiled, and began to type back slowly: “ _yeah for sure! do you wanna take the bus down?_ ”

“You don’t have any bus passes, fool.” Chaeryeong laughed. “What’s wrong with you?”

“She’s trying to make a move!” Yuna defended. “Like you could do better, JUDY.”

“I’ve told you a thousand times, do NOT call me that.” Chaeryeong fumed. “No one has called me that since freshman year! EXCEPT YOU!”

Lia watched the fight unfold as she heard her phone go off. Chaeryeong and Yuna abruptly stopped bickering, their eyes diverted to the small device. Lia slowly opened her phone and read the message out loud: “ _i’d like that! if you don’t have any bus passes yet i gotchu, don’t worry_ ”.

Lia typed back: “ _see you at 5:30 then :)_ ” She turned her phone off, throwing it onto the couch as her roommates looked in awe. 

“What?” Lia turned, looking at their emotionally invested expressions. 

“You’re going on a date!” Yuna exclaimed. “Oh my God, we have to get you ready. I’m thinking high ponytail, maybe a crop top with a cute jacket?”

“Oooh! I could paint her nails orange.” Chaeryeong mused, grabbing Lia’s hand. “Yuna! You have to feel her hands. They’re like little clouds.”

Yuna laughed, grabbing the other hand and nodding in agreement. Lia rolled her eyes, wondering if the two girls always had this much energy. But, she went with it- she kind of liked the attention. Maybe things could be different with this school; Maybe she didn’t have to be a wallflower at Atlas. 

⌁☍

“There’s nothing to talk about.” Ryujin told Yeji as she put on her white lacrosse hoodie. She stared in the mirror, fixing her short hair in the back with her hands.

“You’re going on a date, and you’re not even a _little_ nervous?” Yeji stood behind her, hands on her hips. “The last date you went on with Olivia, you were really nervous.”

“Olivia and I were never really anything.” Ryujin anxiously chuckled, heading to the closet to search for her fleece black jean jacket. She planned dressing as gay as possible so Lia took the hint- as if she didn’t already.

“Stop lying to yourself,” Yeji sighed. “Just admit you liked her, she liked to mess with you, and just move on.”

“Those damn cheerleaders.” Ryujin bitterly stated. “Well, she’s gone now. There’s no point in waiting around for her. Besides, she was a Twilight fan. It would’ve never worked out.”

“Ryu, be honest with me. Are you ready to move on?” Yeji watched as the girl stopped looking for her jacket, and took a deep breath.

“I have to move on.” Ryujin admitted. “I’m not going to let a girl take advantage of me like that again. And it might be early, but I don’t really get that vibe from Lia. Maybe it’s time that I get something good.”

“You know I’m gonna give you this long-ass speech about how you deserve the world.” Yeji deadpanned. “But you really do. You’re so hard on yourself, and if I can’t tell you that enough, maybe someone else will.”

“I don’t-“

“You know she put that shit in your head, right?” Yeji shook her best friend. “You know that you have so much to offer, right?”

Ryujin couldn’t smile. She could just hear her words echo in her ear- _you’re just a dumb jock, what else do you have to offer me?_

But she knew that if tonight was going to go well, she needed to drown out these thoughts for a little bit.

“What if she doesn’t like me?” Ryujin asked Yeji, nervously playing with the ring on her thumb.

“It’s impossible to not like you. You’re THE shin ryujin, remember?” Yeji winked, walking downstairs to the living room

Ryujin hadn’t been called that for months. But, maybe she had to fake it until she felt like she was the cool, silent jock that everyone used to make her out to be. Before Olivia Hye ruined her life. Before Chaeyoung felt the need to apologize to her. Before she didn’t feel like the weakest member on the team.

Ryujin put on her jacket, and left her memories in her dorm room as she headed to the bus stop.

⌁☍

Ryujin was walking towards the bus stop when she saw a girl wearing a ponytail, a black choker, hoop earrings and a crop top. She found herself staring at the girl, and as the girl turned around it was revealed to be Lia. Ryujin was shocked. She looked completely different, but in a good way. She didn’t look like the shy girl from the party last night.

“Hi,” Lia smiled, noticing that Ryujin was staring at her outfit. She made a mental note to thank Yuna and Chaeryeong for all their help.

“Hey,” Ryujin smiled back. “You look really pretty.”

“Thanks.” Lia blushed. “Is this your lacrosse hoodie?”

Ryujin nodded, stepping into the light so Lia could see the design on the front. There were two lacrosse sticks crossed together, with the lion school mascot in the middle. It was navy and gold, with the letters stitched on.

“It looks really nice.” Lia observed. “You look like a true student athlete.”

“It’s also really warm.” Ryujin hugged herself for warmth. 

The bus began to pull up as the two girls entered. Ryujin swiped her bus pass twice, and the two headed to the back of the bus, right next to the window. They watched as the bus pulled away from the stop, and took the route to exit campus.

“So, where are you taking me?” A curious Lia moved closer, which made the Gryffindor nervous.

“It’s a surprise.” Ryujin moved closer as well. “But it is one of my favorite places in the city, and I thought you’d like to see it.”

“Surprise me then.” Lia flirted, as the bus finally stopped in the downtown area. Ryujin held out her hand to the girl.

“Shall we, milady?” Ryujin winked, preceding to laugh at her formality. But the other girl nodded, taking her hand in Ryujin’s and walking off the bus.

The downtown area of the city was more quiet than the bigger parts of the area. It almost felt isolated, something out of a novel. Ryujin turned down a block and stopped at a store window, with a rustic sign that read “Cauldron Coffee”. 

“This is it,” Ryujin beamed at Lia. “But, I have one rule for tonight- you gotta let me order for you.”

“What if you order something really gross?” Lia teased.

“Do you trust me?” Ryujin asked, showing her their intertwined hands. “Because you trust me enough to do this.”

Lia blushed, and nodded her head. Ryujin held the door open and watched her walk in. The Slytherin automatically loved the cafe. The walls were covered in old paintings, and the tables were filled with people on their laptops or sharing a mini-cauldrons of a beverage. The menu was written on a two large chalkboards, and there was a small stage at the front of the seating area. By the restrooms, there were stacks of various board games. She watched as Ryujin’s eyes lit up, searching for a table for two. The lacrosse player grabbed her hand, and made her way to a table by the window. Ryujin took off her jacket, placing it at the opposite end of the table while Lia sat down. Ryujin gave her a smile as she excitedly ran up to the register.

The Slytherin couldn’t help but watch as the cool jock let loose at the register. Ryujin was excited, pointing around and describing her order to the cashier in detail. It made Lia smile at how when Ryujin was with her, she didn’t feel the need to be somebody else. She liked the real her more than the popular persona she put on. But, she still couldn’t figure out which side of Ryujin that the girl herself liked more. She could tell that Ryujin planned out social interactions meticulously, especially with girls. Lia just simply wanted to figure out why.

Ryujin finally came back with a tray of food and drinks- one cauldron and a cup of whipped topping, some sort of syrup, two pewter mugs and a large slice of pumpkin cheesecake.

“So, what’s in the cauldron?” Lia asked, peering into the light brown substance.

“It’s a concoction of my own creation.” Ryujin rubbed her hands together, grabbing the syrup and pouring it in. She stirred the cauldron with the ladle slowly, taking a sniff and grabbing a mug. She poured a few spoonfuls into the mug, but not before grabbing some whipped topping to finish it up. Ryujin then set the mug right in front of Lia, who looked up at her with a curious glance.

“Try it.” Ryujin encouraged, starting to prepare her own drink. “I promise it’s not awful.”

Lia grabbed the mug and took a sip. She smacked her lips together, as her eyes grew wide and she looked at Ryujin, who began to down the drink as if it was an alcoholic beverage. 

“This tastes exactly like butterbeer.” Lia confessed, scooping some whipped cream out of the mug with her finger. 

“I call it butter brew. I figured it out after ordering a butterscotch cocoa here once. They started selling cream soda here last Halloween, so just add a little syrup and some topping- and it tastes exactly how it should. But, it was a trial and error process. And you made me realize that it’s finally perfect.” Ryujin looked up at Lia, who was completely astounded by her non-alcoholic mixology skills. “What? Do I have something on my face?”

“Ryujin, you’re a nerd.” Lia chuckled.

“Tell me something I don’t know.” Ryujin laughed.

“No, you’re a really, _really_ big nerd.” Lia smiled. “But I think that’s why I really, _really_ like you.”

Ryujin choked on her butter brew, coughing a bit before meeting Lia’s gaze. And that’s when it hit her- she didn’t need to be THE Shin Ryujin for people to like her at Atlas when there was a girl right in front of her who liked her for her. The real her, which is something she hasn’t found for a while. 

“Choi Lia, I am going to ask you something very serious.” Ryujin cleared her throat. “I would like for you to be my date for the Lacrosse Formal next month.”

“Aren’t the players only supposed to take their girlfriends to that?” Lia teased, a little taken aback that she would ask her out of all people.

“That can be arranged.” Ryujin flirted, sticking her tongue out. 

“Did you just ask me like THAT to be your girlfriend?” Lia slapped Ryujin on the arm. “Wow, you jocks are really something else.”

“Did I say this date was over yet?” Ryujin raised an eyebrow at the Slytherin. “I’m not going to ask you yet. You just got here- Atlas is already overwhelming enough. I guess what I’m trying to say is…I want you all to myself. I don’t want to share you. And if you’re still not ready to be with me when I officially ask you, I’ll take as long as you need me to.”

Lia observed how respectful Ryujin was of her boundaries. Did Yuna know what she was talking about before? Was all of the lacrosse team the same? Then again, Lia never understood if Yuna knew what she was talking about.

“Maybe I could take you out on a date next time.” Lia thought out loud, registering the athlete’s confused expression. “What?”

“You’ve been here for less than a week. Do you know anywhere?”

“I have Yelp! And my roommates are quite the social butterflies.” Lia rambled, grabbing Ryujin’s hand from across the table. “Or maybe the big bad goalkeeper doesn’t like not being in control?”

Ryujin felt her cheeks get warm. She looked down at her sneakers, regaining composure before looking back up at Lia.

“Monday night,” Ryujin stated, letting go of the other girl’s hand and offering her pinky finger. “Dress a little warmer this time.”

“No promises,” Lea joked, locking their fingers together tightly.

The rest of the evening was spent with refills of Ryujin’s batch of butter brew, a few rounds of Chess, and the occasional song request to the employees. Lia and Ryujin ended up walking to the bus stop, hand in hand. They sat on the bus ride back up together, with Ryujin resting her head on the window. But, Lia quickly noticed and motioned for her to rest on her shoulder instead, a much more comfier option. The lacrosse player walked the new girl back to her dorm, since it was quite dark out and they didn’t want either of them getting lost. Ryujin also didn’t want to say goodbye.

If this was Ryujin from a year ago, she would’ve made out with this girl on the bus. She would’ve brought her back home, and made out with her on the couch until Yeji yelled at her to go upstairs. But, Ryujin was always too afraid to bring girls to her nerdy bedroom so it would usually end there. She felt disconnected from this version of herself in this moment. All she wanted was to make sure Lia got home safely. That Lia had a good time in her new classes. That Lia felt safe. That’s all that mattered to her as they walked to Lia’s dorm building.

“I’m not gonna lie, this might just be the best date I’ve ever been on.” Lia mused when they got to the door. “Needless to say, I was pleasantly surprised.”

“See? Just because I drink protein shakes doesn’t mean I lack a personality entirely.” Ryujin joked, getting a laugh out of Lia. “Can you get some sleep tonight, and not do that typical coming-of-age thing where girls stay up all night thinking about someone?”

“Why do I know exactly what you’re talking about?” Lia smiled, watching as Ryujin stared at her and leaned in. Lia began to wrap her arms around the other girl’s neck, admiring her jawline as she brought her face closer and closer to hers.

“LIA!!!” Yuna burst through the front door of the dorm, making Ryujin jump back from her position. Lia was trying really hard not to be pissed. “I have some great- OH!!! SHIN RYUJIN!!! I AM SO SO SORRY!!! I’ll go back upstairs-“

“It’s fine, no worries,” Ryujin coolly stated, turning Lia towards her roommate. “But, Yuna, I need you to make sure this one gets some sleep tonight. She had a little too much, if you know what I mean.”

“Of course!” Yuna politely smiled. “Chaer and I will take good care of her.”

“Thank you,” Ryujin looked at the Slytherin. “I’ll see you around, princess?”

Lia’s heart beat a little faster at Ryujin’s pet name for her. But she excitedly nodded back as Ryujin grabbed her hand and placed a kiss on the back of it.

“Good night, Shin Ryujin.” Lia hugged.

“Good night, Choi Lia.” Ryujin hugged back, watching as Lia entered the dorm with Yuna, slowly waving goodbye before heading back to her place.

“Lia. Okay. Hi. We’ll talk about that later. But first, I recorded you singing in the shower the other day-“

“Wait. You pulled a Pitch Perfect on me?!” Lia exclaimed.

“Not important.” Yuna diverged. “But, I sent it to some of the Choir people, and you have an audition with the Atlas Accidentals tomorrow afternoon!”

“The-the what?” Lia was lost as Yuna talked circles around her.

“I just joined this year! We just lost a soprano. Please, Lia?” Yuna begged. “Acapella is so much fun. I promise.”

“Acapella? Hell no. I’ve seen Glee. I know how this ends! Count me out!” Lia crossed her arms as they waited for the elevator. The door pinged and both of them stepped in. Yuna wasn’t giving up just yet.

“Look, Lia, you just got here. And you’ve got a great voice!” Yuna encouraged. “I just want to help you make some friends, and I promise all of them are really nice. You’re the new kid! You’ve got nothing to lose!”

Lia took a deep breath as the doors opened to their floor. Yuna got out her ID card as Lia paced nervously. She was right- Lia had nothing to lose. And she might as well try to fit in- right?

“Alright. I’ll go try out.” Lia agreed, getting a cheer from Yuna. “But I’m gonna need a great coach to help me prep for the audition.”

Both of them smiled at each other as they walked down the hallway- except Yuna suddenly bolted to the door and knocked in a very specific pattern. Chaeryeong poked her head out, already in her pajamas and glasses.

“She said yes?” She asked, which Yuna nodded in response to. Both girls excitedly pulled Lia in by her arms, making the girl pray to Albus Dumbledore that she was making the right decision.


	3. Sunday, November 1st

“Okay.” Yuna announced, queueing up her powerpoint onto the dorm’s TV screen. “I’m ready when you are, Lia!”

“Was an entire powerpoint really necessary?” Chaeryeong asked, bringing Lia in. She put on a cropped hoodie and jeans, and her favorite fuzzy socks. In her hands was a cup of coffee, her main source of energy for the past few hours of rehearsal.

“Yes, because she needs to know who everyone is going into the audition!! But ask questions like you don’t.” Yuna tapped her laptop, and the first slide revealed a shorter girl with a blonde bob. “This is Park Jihyo, the President of Atlas Accidentals. She’s in charge of deciding who’s in ultimately. She used to be former Student Body President, but she lost to Yeji this year. She still serves on her board as the rep for the Art & Music programs. She’s Mezzo 1.”

“Who’s the guy next to her?” Lia asked, pointing to a boy with shaggy, dyed hair.

“That’s Daniel, her boyfriend. He’s also in Accidentals, he’s our Baritone. He arranges all the songs that we do. He’s really talented.” Yuna clicked to the next slide. “Nayeon and Sana, Jihyo’s second in command. Nayeon used to dance, until she got injured. Sana used to be a cheerleader, but dropped it to come sing with us. These three are so close. I’ve never seen them without each other. Nayeon’s Soprano 1, and Sana’s our Mezzo 2.”

Yuna clicked to the next slide, which was a photo of her.

“Hey! That’s not allowed!” Chaeryeong called out. 

“You didn’t make the powerpoint, so keep your comments until the end of the presentation!” Yuna yelled back. “Anyways, THIS is Shin Yuna- THE alto. She carries the group on her BACK. Nobody sings like her.”

“So, I’m trying out to be Soprano 2?” Lia asked. “And what do I have to sing?”

“Uh- NEXT SLIDE!” Yuna clicked, showing three boys. “This is Chan, Woojin, and Felix. These are the boys. Daniel doesn’t count. He’s too good for them. But they’re jocks who like to sing, they play soccer. Woojin and Felix are our Tenors. Felix raps, along with Chan. He’s our Bass, and he’s like their big brother. Everyone is super nice, so even if you don’t make it-“

“YUNA!!!” Chaeryeong hit her roommate, throwing a pillow. “Let’s not talk about that. Do you have a song you want to sing?”

“JUDY!!” Yuna interrupted. “Lia sweetie, do you have any questions?”

“Uh, I do actually.” Lia admitted. “Yuna, when do I start rehearsing for the actual audition?”

“Oh. Right. I forgot about that part.”

⌁☍

Ryujin woke up at 5 AM every morning to go to the gym with Yeji. After a 2 hour workout, Yeji would go to her Student Council meetings and Ryujin would go to her job. Ryujin worked in the Photo Lab in the school’s Arts and Music basement. Her job was to simply clear the computers of many storage, as well as make sure that the cameras and the darkroom were working fine. She was essentially there to make sure the equipment wasn’t damaged throughout the week of classes, and to talk to Mr. Lim. He was her Film & Photography teacher, who kept trying to convince Ryujin to pursue the art form professionally. But he and her both knew that Ryujin wasn’t like most kids at Atlas, and that she was here on an athletic scholarship. Only Yeji knew other than him, and Ryujin intended to keep it that way. 

“Mr. Lim?” Ryujin asked, opening the door to the basement offices. “It’s Ryujin.”

Mr. Lim popped up from under a table. He looked like most of the teachers at Atlas, with the exception of his dangly earring and his dyed gray hair. His geometric print button-up and plain black tie made him stand out amongst a school with gray walls. He smiled at the sight of his favorite student.

“Thank God you’re here.” He greeted, running to the adjacent computer lab. “I got an email- I think you’re going to want to read this.”

Ryujin sat down at the main computer desk, and scrolled through the email.

_…We are looking for applicants for our visual media scholarship. Submissions must include either a five minute video, or five art pieces. Finalists will receive a substantial amount for four years of their academic studies, totaling $30,000 USD…_

“Holy shit.” Ryujin let out. “Mr. Lim, this is amazing. This could help my family out a lot. When’s the deadline?”

“For you?” He chuckled at the junior. “Probably not for a while. But I’d say apply for it as soon as you start looking at schools, just to be safe.”

“I really want to do this, for as long as I can.” Ryujin confessed. “I’m just scared- maybe I’m tired of being seen as a dumb jock.”

“Trust me, kid- the only one who sees you that way is you.” Mr. Lim patted her on the shoulder. “You’ve got a talent for taking photos. What’s holding you back?”

“What if I’m telling a story and nobody wants to listen?” Ryujin thought out loud.

“Tell them for yourself.” Mr. Lim responded. “Maybe that’s who you should be making them for in the first place.”

Ryujin knew what she wanted to make art about- what she loved. What she loved was lacrosse, cats, and girls. But she wanted to make something with meaning- give a slice of what was in her mind for the world to see. She didn’t know if her life was terribly boring or horrifyingly exciting.

“Now, why did you really want me to come in today?” Ryujin asked, turning around in the swivel chair.

“Someone needs to clear the storage on all these computers.” Mr. Lim laughed, opening his lunchbox and sitting down at his desk. “Come on! Those systems don’t clear themselves.”

Ryujin sighed. Although she loved work with Mr. Lim, there’s only one thing she wanted to be doing right now, and that involved Lia. She hated to admit it, but she had fallen head over heels for the new girl. She could only imagine what she was doing today, and longed to be a part of her daily routine.

She had to face the truth- she really wanted to be Lia’s girlfriend. 

⌁☍

“She better be good, Yuna.” A tired Felix yawned in his chair, stretching his legs onto Chan’s lap. His messy hair was hidden behind his soccer headband, as he snuggled up into his Atlas Accidentals dark yellow hoodie.

“I don’t think Jihyo would’ve invited her if she was bad.” Yuna argued. “Besides, would you expect anything less from MY ROOMMATE?”

“Where even is she?” Chan questioned, as Sana and Nayeon burst into the room. Both girls were carrying boxes of paper packets. “Guess she’s coming.”

“She’s not in a great mood.” Nayeon warned. “Daniel tried to go calm her down, but I don’t think it worked.”

“It definitely didn’t.” Sana laughed. 

Jihyo burst into the auditorium with Daniel walking behind her. She threw her book bag down, and took out her laptop. She took a deep breath and strolled down the aisle. Daniel had a defeated look on his face.

“Yep. She’s pissed.” Woojin joked, receiving a glare from the President. Jihyo did a quick breathing exercise as she composed herself.

“This meeting for the Atlas Accidentals is now in session.” Jihyo announced. “First order of business, I just came from the Student Body meeting. Yeji and I tried to get our concert locked down for December, but unfortunately we’ve been pushed forward to right before Thanksgiving break. Meaning, we need to fill our Mezzo 1 part as soon as possible.”

“You’re kidding?” Nayeon exclaimed. “We have less than a month to put together our show?”

“It might not be. I’ve been working on some new arrangements. They’re pretty easy, but we’re going to have to add in extra rehearsal time.” Daniel explained. “Yuna, can you go check to see if the new girl is ready?”

Yuna nodded, and walked outside through the stage exit. Chan sighed deeply, and looked up at Daniel.

“You know, some of us have practice.” Chan defended, motioning to his two teammates.

“Oh, so you’re going to States this year?” Daniel asked, which silenced Chan immediately. Though charismatic, everyone on the Accidentals knew that the soccer team was not good.

“She’s ready.” Yuna called out, running back inside.

“You think she’s gonna be good?” Daniel asked, as he sat down next to Jihyo.

“I hope so, otherwise we don’t really have a choice.” Jihyo whispered, as Lia walked out onto the stage.

“Can I have your name and grade please?” Daniel asked politely.

“My name is Choi Lia, and I’m in Grade 11.” Lia told the eight members. “I am going to be singing an arrangement of Needy by Ariana Grande.”

“We’re ready when you are.” Jihyo ordered, watching as Daniel turned on his phone camera.

Lia took a deep breath. Nothing was holding her back anymore form the shy girl that she used to be. She was determined to make a name for herself here at Atlas- and nobody was going to stop her.

“ _And I'ma scream and shout for what I love, Passionate, but I don't give no fucks. I admit that I'm a lil' messed up, but I can hide it when I'm all dressed up._ ” Lia sang, pushing her anxiety farther and farther back into her head until she couldn’t see it anymore. “ _I'm obsessive and I love too hard, good at overthinking with my heart. how you even think it got this far, this far_?”

Jihyo was in awe of the girl’s voice. She turned to Daniel, who was awestruck as well. She saw Nayeon lean forward in her seat and give Yuna a high five. She knew that voice recording of the girl in the shower was good, but she didn’t expect it to be what they were missing all along for the group.

“And I can be needy, way too damn needy. I can be needy, tell me how good it feels to be needed.” Lia got more comfortable onstage, as if she was singing for someone to hear what she was saying. “I can be needy, so hard to please me. I know it feels so good to be needed.”

As soon as she stopped singing, the group erupted in applause. She received a standing ovation- even Jihyo stood up and applauded with a smile. Lia bowed bashfully, watching as Yuna ran onto the stage and gave her a big hug.

“SEE? SHE’S SO GOOD!” Yuna shouted. “I knew you could do it.”

Jihyo looked over at Daniel, who nodded in agreement. Jihyo cleared her throat to silence the room.

“Lia, The Atlas Accidentals would like to offer you our Soprano 2 position-“ Jihyo announced, watching the younger girl’s eyes light up. “-but only if you’re able to attend our practices and be ready for our concert before Thanksgiving break.”

“I promise you that I will work hard in order to make our group the best it can be.” Lia vowed. “When do we start rehearsing?”

“Daniel, when should we start rehearsing?” Jihyo asked her boyfriend, who was busy calculating the time that they needed in order to be ready by the concert date.

“Uhh…now.” Daniel showed her his calculator, which made Jihyo sigh and then put on a brave smile.

“Well in that case- to the practice room!” Jihyo called out.

Lia followed the members out of the auditorium, but not before shooting Ryujin a quick text: “ _maybe it’s just me, but i'm missing you like crazy today._ ”

⌁☍

Ryujin got out of work a few hours later, exhausted from wiping every single individual computer for storage space. She walked back to the dorm, only to see Yeji on the couch, laughing next to a guy. Ryujin shut the door, which broke the two out of their conversation.

“Yeji, I need advice-who are you?” Ryujin asked bluntly.

“Soobin, this is my roommate Ryujin. Ryujin, this is Soobin. He’s on Student Council with me.” Yeji introduced, while Soobin leaned over and shook Ryujin’s hand. “He’s our Sophomore Class rep.”

“I’ve seen you play.” Soobin looks at Ryujin. “You’re a very good goalkeeper. People call you the team’s hidden weapon.”

“Nope, that’s Yeji.” Ryujin complimented her roommate. “Yeji, it’s important. Please.”

Yeji sighed, helping Soobin escort his things out of the dorm and waving goodbye as he descended the staircase. 

“Please don’t tell me you have a crush on him.” Ryujin begged.

“I plead the fifth,” Yeji deadpanned. “Now, I know this has to do with Lia. I got something to tell you too- have you seen the Accidentals’ Instagram?”

“Why would I be following the Atlas Accidentals on Instagram?” Ryujin asked, but looked up the account on her phone anyways. “…’Congrats to our newest member, Lia Choi, on becoming our newest Soprano 2’…I didn’t know about this.”

Ryujin was a little hurt that Lia didn’t tell her about the audition, but she did just meet this girl, after all. She had a habit of overanalyzing things when there wasn’t much to dissect. Her brain just loved throwing her through loopholes.

“Are you gonna see her perform?” Yeji asked, grabbing Ryujin’s phone. 

“Of course! But what if she doesn’t have time for me, if she’s so busy with this?” Ryujin admitted her fears, throwing herself onto the couch.

“I didn’t think you would be graduating from dumb jock to dumb gay, but here we are.” Yeji joked. “Calm down. You know she likes you. And she’s not manipulative, unlike SOMEONE who will not be named.”

“Yeah, I know.” Ryujin confessed. “I want to see her tonight.”

“Aren’t you seeing her tomorrow?” Yeji asked, rolling her eyes.

“Well, yeah. I just kind of miss her- oh, CRAP! I really do like her.” Ryujin facepalmed. “I really like her Yeji. I can’t stop thinking about her.”

“Then you might wanna text her back.” Yeji threw Ryujin’s phone at her.

“She did not text me-“

“CHECK YOUR MESSAGES.” Yeji shouted. Ryujin obeyed, and couldn’t believe her eyes: “ _Maybe it’s just me, but I’m missing you like crazy today._ ”

“She likes me.” Ryujin said, finally letting Yeji knock some sense into her.

“Now, go get ‘em, tiger.” Yeji smiled. 

Ryujin watched as the sun set outside, and knew what she had to do. She grabbed her jacket, running down the steep campus walkways to Lia’s dorm. 

⌁☍

“It looks like our work here is done.” Chaeryeong said to Yuna, while Yeji was over FaceTime. “I can’t believe this actually worked.”

“I told you they’d get along.” Yuna added. “And look at us! We’re professional matchmakers!”

“They can never know about this.” Yeji told the two. “They can never know that we set them up. Ryujin will not be happy, and I bet she’ll think I’m coupling her off with every girl I see.”

“She’s so hard-headed.” Chaeryeong sighed.

“Try living with her.” Yeji laughed. “But, there’s one more thing we need to do. Ryujin is coming over soon. So I need you guys to run away from your dorm.”

“But we live here!” Chaeryeong defended. 

“Just come over, Ryujin just left- we shall celebrate our achievement!” Yeji bribed. “Besides, I think she’s gonna ask her the big question.”

“They just met.” Yuna thought out loud.

“They’re in LOVE.” Yeji dramatically shouted. “Now, come over and eat pizza with me.”

Chaeryeong got up, but not before her phone buzzed. She checked the text message, and her jaw dropped.

“Yeji, did you just get the same text?” She looked up, seeing Yeji reading her phone. Yuna was confused.

“What’s going on?” Yuna asked. “Is everything okay?”

“She’s coming back to school tomorrow. It’s been a year.” Yeji realized. “What the fuck are we going to do?”

“Whoa. Who’s coming back?” Yuna asked, watching as Chaeryeong’s smile dropped to look at her.

“Olivia Hye is coming back to Atlas Academy tomorrow.” Chaeryeong explained.

“What does that have to do with Ryujin and Lia?”

⌁☍

Ryujin ran to Lia’s dorm, repeating what she was going to say in her head over and over again- _Lia, I really like you. Will you be my girlfriend?_ She was so scared to say it out loud- the last time she asked someone to be her girlfriend was one of the worst moment of her time at Atlas.

“Ryujin?” She turned behind to see Lia, wearing a yellow Atlas Accidentals hoodie and carrying a folder of sheet music. “What are you doing here?”

“I- uh, I just really wanted to see you. I got your text.” Ryujin held up her phone nervously. “And, I missed you a lot today.”

Lia smiled, taking out her ID and letting both of them in. Lia noticed how Ryujin’s aura this time was different about her- she walked with hesitation, as if she was scared to say something.

“I didn’t know you were joining The Accidentals.” Ryujin told her. “I mean, I’m happy you got in, but-“

“I didn’t even know that I was auditioning today until last night.” Lia confessed. “But, I wanted to tell you about it. We just went right into rehearsal after I tried out. We have a concert in two and a half weeks that we aren’t prepared for.”

Lia walked into her dorm, which to her surprise was empty. Ryujin watched as she set her sheet music down on the coffee table, and turned around to her. 

“Can you come cuddle me?” Lia asked, extending her hands out and watching as Ryujin grabbed them. She liked seeing the Gryffindor smile- she had a beautiful smile that she kept hidden from most people.

Ryujin nodded, and the two went upstairs to Lia’s room and cuddled on her bed. Ryujin loved the aesthetic of her room- it was simple yet elegant. There were tapestries hung along the side of the bed, as well as some Polaroids with her friends from Canada. Her string lights were a pale yellow, and her side of the room was decorated with a light green aesthetic. Her windowsills were lined with tiny succulents. Although she just moved in, she managed to make the room look like it was home for her.

“Lia, I came to ask you something.” Ryujin whispered as a Spotify playlist played softly in the background.

“Okay,” Lia smiled, shifting closer to Ryujin. “What do you want to ask me?”

“I want you to be mine.” Ryujin explained. “I don’t want to rush you into a relationship, because I want to try and take things slow. The last girl I liked hurt me a lot, so I hope you can understand why I say ‘I want you to be mine’ instead of ‘I want you to be my girlfriend’.”

“Do you wanna talk about it?” Lia wrapped her arm around Ryujin’s neck, making both of them blush. Ryujin nodded, and Lia used her other hand to hold the athlete’s.

“I’m not like the other kids at this school.” Ryujin admitted. “I don’t come from a lot of money, and I transferred here the start of my freshman year. I’m on an athletic scholarship. I used to be such a social kid- I even danced with Yeji as an extracurricular! But, then there was this girl on the lax team, and I fell really hard for her. She kind of acted like I was her accessory, though. Long story short- I told her how I felt, she laughed it off, and then went to study abroad. And I was so upset that I quit almost everything that I used to do. I guess I’ve moved on from that, but I’m still really hurt from it. I like you, but I’m scared of even the slightest chance I’ll get hurt. I’m a wimp, what can I say?”

“Hey, there’s nothing wrong with admitting your feelings. That doesn’t make you weak.” Lia comforted, brushing the bangs out from in front of her eyes. “There’s strength in admitting that you’re not okay. I admire your bravery. In fact, I think I like you more for it.”

“Really?” Ryujin looked in awe at the girl, who nodded her head. 

“Of course.” Lia smiled back. “One day, I’ll tell you all about my old school.”

“Lia…can I…” Ryujin looked down at her lips. She never realized how pink they were. But, she couldn’t stop watching it move as she talked. “I don’t want to make you uncomfortable.”

“You talk too much when you gets nervous.” Lia giggled, closing the distance between the two girls and pressing her lips to Ryujin’s. Ryujin was a little taken aback when they parted, but then leaned forward and kissed Lia for herself. When they parted, the two girls couldn’t wipe the smiles off their faces.

“Hi,” Ryujin’s nose was touching Lia’s.

“Hi,” Lia’s hands were around Ryujin’s neck, as the Gryffindor’s snaked around her waist.

“Can we do that one more time?” Ryujin asked bashfully, watching Lia laugh. She could hear that laugh on loop for hours. “You’re mine, Lia. I’m glad that you’re mine."


	4. Monday, November 2nd

Ryujin woke up the next morning with a smile on her face. In fact, her smile was so big that Yeji was quite frightened of it. She woke up, made a bowl of cereal, and walked to class with Yeji and Heejin.

“Something’s up with her,” Heejin whispered to Yeji as Ryujin skipped through the halls. “I haven’t seen her this happy since that Hogwarts app got released.”

“She’s got a girl.” Yeji told her, which shocked Heejin. 

“She’s finally opened her cold heart to someone?” Heejin gasped. “Chaeyoung will be impressed.”

There’s one more thing that Ryujin didn’t tell Lia about confessing to Olivia- just before she left, she hooked up with Chaeyoung. The team captain now felt a burden to make sure her goalie felt better. She even tried to set Ryujin with a couple girls, but it was pointless. If there was one thing Shin Ryujin knew how to do, it was to keep a grudge. But, Yeji prayed that would change.

Ryujin walked into her first class, History, and sat with her teammates at their usual table. Dahyun was suspicious about Ryujin’s positive aura.

“Okay, what gives, Seven?” Dahyun asked. “You haven’t smiled like that in ages. Is there something we should know about?”

“I’ve met the girl of my dreams,” Ryujin sighed, taking her phone out quickly: “g _ood morning, pretty girl! would you like to sit with me at lunch in the courtyard?_ ”

“I hate to say it, but I think she’s right on this one.” Yeji smiled. “And to think you didn’t want to come to the Lax Party!”

“How could you?” Dahyun pretended to be offended. “I put songs on my playlist just for you.”

Chaeyoung entered the classroom, wearing a turtleneck under her varsity jacket. She sat next to her roommate, who pulled down her turtleneck with her fingers to reveal even more hickies. Chaeyoung huffed, pulling her turtleneck up.

“Dahyun!” Chaeyoung hit her shoulder.

“What? Now I know why you didn’t come home last night.” Dahyun laughed.

“How could you have sex on a Sunday? That’s The Lord’s day!” Heejin joked.

“I don’t think I should be the moral standard for this team.” Chaeyoung smirked. “Hyunjin should be coming soon with a confirmation on Senior Night. This Friday, we’re playing for charity. Everyone has to be there. Including Miss Student Body President.”

“I’ll be sure to give you idiots a fair send-off.” Yeji chuckled.

“You guys!” Hyunjin ran into the classroom, sitting down in a huff. “You’ll never guess who’s back.”

“Alright, settle down everyone.” The teacher began, his voice groggy and tired. “We have a familiar face joining us for the rest of the year.”

Ryujin’s stomach dropped when she saw her walk to the front of the room. She looked different- her eyes were darker. The small details that she remembered admiring were not facts that she wanted to throw away into a burning trash bin. She prayed that she would sit anywhere else in the room, anywhere but at their table.

But of course she sat right next to Chaeyoung, and right in front of her. She watched as Yeji gave her a look of warning, to not stir the pot.

“Long time no see,” was all Olivia got out. But Ryujin broke her stare, and began to doodle in her notebook. This was not going to be sophomore year all over again.

⌁☍

“I can’t wait to see her tonight.” Lia sighed, as Yuna pretended to barf. But, she had to admit that she was really happy. And even though it was because of a girl, Yuna was still happy that Lia was getting comfortable with boarding at Atlas.

Lia was on cloud nine that Monday morning. She woke up for her first class with Yuna, Chemistry. Even her roommate could tell that she was head over heels. 

“LIA!” Sana ran into the class in her sweatpants, giving her a hug. “Jihyo wanted me to tell you two that we’re having a photoshoot for our concert posters tomorrow. Be sure to wear blue!”

“Isn’t our color yellow?” Yuna was confused.

“Yeah, but we’re trying to do something with yellow lighting- it’s gonna be cool. Mr. Lim has one of his best students photographing it. They came in first at the State Art Competition last semester. Well, I gotta head to Calc- just remember, okay? See you guys at practice!” Sana scurried out of the room.

Lia looked down at her phone to see a text from Ryujin, who now had a yellow heart next to her name: “g _ood morning, pretty girl! would you like to sit with me at lunch in the courtyard?_ ” She smiled, and typed back quickly: “i _would really like that! can my friends come sit with us? you can bring yeji, and we can scold her for not reading the books._ ”

“You’re head over heels for Shin Ryujin.” Yuna teased.

“Well…yeah, I really like her.” Lia confessed to her roommate. “But, she wants to take it slow, and I have to accept that.”

“Did you tell her about what happened at your last school?” Yuna asked.

“No. I mean, not yet. I mean- how do I bring something like that up to someone like her?” Lia groaned. “She seems really respectful though, so maybe everything will be fine. She’ll get suspicious when I go to see my therapist and stuff.”

“You don’t have to tell her everything.” Yuna consoled. “Besides, you gotta take care of yourself first. Promise me that?”

Lia nodded as her roommate gave her a smile, and swore that she would put herself first. In order for her to get better, she needed to put herself first- no matter how much she found herself falling for Ryujin even more with every moment they spent together.

⌁☍

Ryujin wanted to punch whoever decided it would be a good idea to let Olivia Hye back into Atlas Academy. Why couldn’t she have stayed in France for another year? Or two years? Or for the rest of her terrible existence? She finally met a great girl who liked Harry Potter and not emotionally manipulating her, and she couldn’t believe the timing of all of this. She didn’t understand why Olivia was being nice to her, as if nothing ever happened between them. 

She was in Algebra 2 now, and she desperately wanted to just walk out of class and go back to her dorm. She didn’t care about parabolas, but she did care about her GPA. So, she asked to go to the bathroom- Yeji taught her that sometimes when you felt anxious, all you needed to do was walk by yourself and do some deep breathing exercises. Although Ryujin teased her about her hippie methods, she did agree that it worked. That didn’t mean that she was going to a Yoga class anytime soon with her, though. 

Ryujin strolled the halls until she came to her locker. She opened and closed it a couple times, deciding to take her varsity jacket out. A part of her really wanted to see it on Lia, imagining how the royal blue would look on her shoulders as she laughed next to her.

The lacrosse player didn’t feel too good about lying, so she decided to finally go to the bathroom. She opened her phone to see a text from Lia, which made her heart skip a beat: “i _would really like that! can my friends come sit with us? you can bring yeji, and we can scold her for not reading the books._ ”

She typed back quickly before pushing open the heavy door to the girls’ bathroom: _“i’ll let her know after class! see you in a bit, i have a surprise for you :)”_

Ryujin leaned against the door, and scrolled through their messages a bit. Her thoughts of Lia were interrupted by two people talking by the sinks.

“Look, I’ll never forgive myself for what I did to her. But I didn’t expect to catch feelings.” Ryujin knew that voice from anywhere- it was her team captain. “But a year has passed, and I haven’t stopped thinking about you. No matter how hard I try, I can’t get you out of my system.”

“So you’re not the player everyone thinks you are.” That was Olivia. Olivia was talking to Chaeyoung about the incident. “But, I didn’t come back for you. I came back to make things right. I hurt her really badly.”

“Ryujin’s stronger now.” At the mention of her name, Ryujin closed the door silently and hid behind the wall. “Hyejoo, please. I’m going away soon. And I need you to tell me that this meant something to you.”

“I’m sorry, Chae, but I’m here to get Ryujin back. Maybe you should try being what everyone expects for you to be.”

“You know that I have never been like that- and you used me to hurt Ryujin. You broke the team apart.” Chaeyoung’s voice was hoarse, as if she was holding back tears. “I’m only like this because that’s what I am without you.”

“I know I made you this way. I wanted you to be okay when I was gone.”

“She’s talking to someone. Can’t you just give me one more chance?” Chaeyoung pleaded. “I’m not letting you fuck up her happiness again.”

“I know she still thinks about me.” Olivia thought out loud. “I know she does.”

“She doesn’t.” Ryujin slipped, putting her hand over her mouth. Shit.

“Who was that?” Chaeyoung asked, walking over and seeing a petrified Ryujin. “Fuck, dude. Fuck, I am so sorry.”

“So when were you gonna tell me?” Ryujin asked, coming to meet Olivia’s surprised gaze. “When were you two gonna tell me the truth?”

“Ryujin, I came back for you-“

“Well then, you should’ve just stayed.” Ryujin told her. “You played me. And if I’ve learned anything from my team captain, it’s to not be attached to anyone. But that was a lie too, right?”

“I didn’t want to hurt your feelings, okay?” Chaeyoung said. “And- I really don’t like showing my feelings. I have a good reason for that, I swear.”

“Maybe you two should talk about each other, and not about me.” Ryujin turned to Olivia. “And you’re a fucking asshole for thinking I would just come back to you.”

“You treated me so well.” Olivia walked closer to her, making Ryujin uncomfortable. “You were so good to me, even when I wasn’t good to you.”

“And I changed after that. God, when will you learn that what you say affects people, even if you don’t mean it? You can’t keep putting a band-aid on stuff you did.” 

“You’re not telling anyone about this,” Chaeyoung threatened.

“I can do whatever I want.”

“Not when you answer to me.” The team captain sighed, calming down. “Look, how about we come to a deal- if any one of us oversteps, then I’m contacting Coach. Until playoffs is over, you’re staying away from my goalie. But I still think we should talk, Olivia.”

But Olivia had already walked out of the bathroom, leaving Chaeyoung to run after her. Ryujin took a deep breath, gripped her jacket in her arms, and walked slowly back to class while trying to process what happened.

⌁☍

“Shit.” Yeji walked next to Ryujin, who just explained to her everything that had happened before in the bathroom. “She’s here to get you back?”

“That’s not happening, though. I’ve moved on.” Ryujin explained. “I just hope she doesn’t make Lia’s life a living hell here.”

“I doubt she will, she’ll probably go back to the squad though.” Yeji remarked. “Well, hopefully she won’t be around as much.”

“She’s not messing with my chances of getting a full ride for lacrosse.” Ryujin told Yeji, as she saw Lia waving to her from across the courtyard. “This stays between you and me, alright?”

Yeji nodded as Ryujin walked faster to Lia, sitting down next to her and giving her a big hug. Lia smiled back as Ryujin winked at her.

“So what’s my surprise?” Lia asked as Ryujin revealed her varsity jacket in her hands. “You’re gonna let me wear it?”

“I thought you’d look pretty good in it, and there’s only one way to find out.” Ryujin handed her the jacket, and watched as she threw it over her shoulders.

“It smells like you,” Lia smiled, kissing Ryujin on the cheek. “Thank you.”

Yeji, Yuna, and Chaeryeong looked on as they were isolated from the conversation, turning to each other and wondering how to break the awkward silence.

“Hey Yeji! How are you?” Yuna laughed.

“Oh, I’m great! Terribly single, but great!” Yeji sarcastically groaned. “What about you, Chaeryeong?”

“Well, I’m still passing Math, so at least I haven’t dropped out yet!” The three girls all clapped together, squealing excitedly as if they were in a sorority.

Ryujin rolled her eyes, grabbing Lia’s hand.

“So, what do you have planned for our date tonight?” Ryujin questioned.

“It’s a surprise. I’m kidnapping you.” Lia shushed. “6:00, okay? I’ll kidnap you from practice if I have to.”

“I’d let you kidnap me whenever you would want to,” Ryujin smirked.

“Kinky!” Yeji cackled, as Ryujin got up and tackled her to the ground.

⌁☍

Practice was not the best today in Ryujin’s opinion. Chaeyoung was frustrated with the incident in the bathroom, and it affected the entire team’s performance. She was getting increasingly worried about the charity match on Friday, and that she wouldn’t be on the starting lineup. She needed to be for the scouts, but she also really wanted Lia to come and see her play. She felt proud to know that there was someone out there in the stands cheering her on, something that she’s seen been done for her team members in the past. Ryujin blushed at the thought of someone cheering for her, someone to make a sign for her, and maybe someone to take out for a victory dinner afterwards at a local diner. 

“Hey, your girlfriend’s here.” Yeji nudged, as Ryujin was shaken out of her thoughts while she was laying down on her bed. 

She came downstairs to see Lia wearing her varsity jacket. Her hair was down, and she smiled warmly at Ryujin.

“Hi,” Ryujin shyly walked over, hugging Lia tightly.

“Ready to go?” Lia asked, watching Ryujin nod in agreement. “Good. Come on.”

Lia grabbed her hand, and led her downstairs to an Uber. The two got in, and Ryujin fastened her seatbelt as the car pulled away from her dormitory.

“You’re not gonna give me one hint?” Ryujin asked.

“Nope. That would ruin the surprise, silly.” Lia giggled.

“Can you promise me that it’s a good surprise?”

“If you don’t like it, I’ll give you my wand collection.” Lia gambled, watching Ryujin’s eyes light up.

“Deal,” The lacrosse player pinky promised.

The Uber pulled up to a giant, standalone movie theater. Lia and Ryujin got out together, thanking the driver for her ride.

“You took me to see a MOVIE?” Ryujin exclaimed. “Wow, and I thought you were treating me.”

“Read the marquee.” Lia pointed.

She looked up to see the marquee read **AVENGERS ENDGAME: BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND FOR ONE NIGHT ONLY.**

“No way,” was all that Ryujin could let out.

“Yes way,” Lia smiled at the lacrosse player’s disbelief. “Come on, let’s go get some popcorn.”

Lia ordered a large popcorn as she led Ryujin into the middle of the theater. The seats were leather, and they reclined back. She cuddled up to the lacrosse player, as the opening credits began to play.

“How did you know that I liked Avengers?” Ryujin asked as she snuggled into Lia’s arms.

“You have a Thanos keychain on your backpack zipper.” Lia pointed out. “And Yeji told me that you really liked the movie when you first saw it. You’ve been looking pretty stressed lately, so I just wanted to give you a little bit of that happiness back.”

Ryujin kissed Lia on the cheek as they watched the movie together. Eventually, Lia wrapped her arms around the lacrosse player, as they cheered during the final fight sequence during the end of the film. She loved seeing her eyes light up as the action played out onscreen, as if she was awestruck by the film’s creativity. 

“This is a really good movie,” Lia told Ryujin, turning to see her unable to take her eyes off the Slytherin. “Hey! The movie’s right there.”

“I know,” Ryujin blushed, moving closer to kiss her. Lia broke the kiss, hitting Ryujin’s arm and pointing to the screen. “I just like this view better.”

Lia was taken aback by her comment, as Ryujin moved to cup her face. Her finger ran over a tiny eyebrow scar, which made Lia wince.

“I thought it was an eyebrow hair, I’m sorry.” Ryujin apologized, kissing the mark. “How did you get it?”

“I’ll tell you one day.” Lia pinky promised, masking her sadness.

The movie finally ended after two and a half hours, with an excited Ryujin standing up and delivering a thunderous applaud as the credits rolled.

“Bravo! Best movie ever! When’s the next one?” Ryujin joked, knowing that it wouldn’t be for another year or two.

“You’re such a dork.” Lia laughed. “Wanna go get an Uber back?”

Ryujin nodded as they imitated the characters poses during the fight sequence while walking outside. Ryujin pretended to be Captain America while Lia pretended to blast her as Iron Man. Ryujin grabbed her from behind, spinning her around.

“Ryujin! Put me down!” Lia giggled.

“You can’t blast me now!” Ryujin shouted, putting her down finally.

The two of them finally got into the Uber back to Atlas, with a tired Ryujin falling asleep in Lia’s arms. Lia looked down at her, leaning over to hear her little snores.

“I love you 3000, Shin Ryujin.” Lia placed a kiss on her forehead, looking out the window and feeling more lucky than she ever had.


	5. Tuesday, November 3rd

Ryujin woke up in Lia’s bed. She was scared- what if they did something? Would she have remembered it? Do people remember doing things like that?

“Ryujin?” Lia called from downstairs. “Is that you?”

Ryujin looked down- she was still in her hoodie and jeans. Lia must’ve taken her shoes off and let her sleep with her.

“What time is it?” Ryujin asked, rolling off the bed as Lia rushed upstairs.

“It’s six in the morning.” Lia entered the room, kissing Ryujin’s head. “I asked Yeji to bring your books over last night. Wanna get some breakfast before class?”

Ryujin nodded, before grabbing Lia’s waist and pulling her back into bed with her. Lia squealed as the two wrestled under the covers, with Ryujin successfully pinning the Slytherin down to the bed. Lia was a little surprised- she knew the Gryffindor worked out, but she didn't realize how much upper body strength she possessed. It made her flustered.

“Good morning,” Lia breathed, not breaking her stare from Ryujin’s big brown eyes. Ryujin leaned down, softly kissing Lia’s lips. She wrapped her arms around the Gryffindor, pulling her closer into her. But they were interrupted by the grumbling of Lia’s stomach, which made both girls laugh. Ryujin got up, rubbing her eyes.

“Okay, let’s go eat.” Ryujin smiled. She got dressed in the bathroom, putting on one of Lia’s beanies and grabbing her backpack.

The two walked hand in hand downtown to a small diner. They sat at a table for two in the middle of the dining area. Ryujin couldn’t believe how close she felt to someone for the first time in a while. It’s as if Lia was a bulldozer- singlehandedly taking down the walls that she has built up for years. Usually, Ryujin liked keeping things to herself- but ever since she met the new girl she just wants to tell her every thought in the caverns of her mind. 

“Stop staring!” Lia hit Ryujin’s arm as she tried to look over the menu, but she couldn’t help but return her gaze. Ryujin made her feel safe- like she could do anything she wanted. She hasn’t felt that way when it came to a relationship before. “The waiter’s gonna come over soon, do you know what you want?”

“Pick for me.” Ryujin smirked.

Lia smiled to herself. She watched as the waiter walked over, adjusting the apron around his waist. Ryujin leaned back calmly in her chair, watching as Lia tried hard not to laugh.

“Good morning, ladies!” The waiter greeted. “What can I get for you today?”

“I’ll have the French Toast, please.” Lia ordered, looking at Ryujin’s smug face over her menu. “And she’ll have…the smiley face pancakes! And two cups of your finest hot chocolate, please.”

“You got it! I’ll be back with your drinks in a few minutes!” The waiter smiled, awkwardly making his exit as Ryujin and Lia were staring at each other.

“THE SMILEY FACE PANCAKES??” Ryujin laughed.

“You told me to pick for you! Besides, when has anyone’s day gone bad when they start it off with a hearty, delicious serving of smiley face pancakes?” Lia smiled. “I don’t want you to have a bad day.”

“Please, no day could ever be bad with you in it.” Ryujin blushed, checking her calendar app on her phone. “Oh- I think I’m doing the photoshoot for the Accidentals today.”

“You are?” Lia exclaimed. “Sana told me that you were such a talented photographer! How come you didn’t tell me?”

“I- I guess I didn’t want you to be embarrassed of me? Also, I know you like surprises.” Ryujin revealed, watching as the waiter set down their mugs of hot chocolate. “Thank you.”

“I like when you surprise me, not anyone else.” Lia clarified. “I’m excited to see you in action- you’re gonna make me look so good!”

“I don’t think any camera or any lens could make you look better than you already do in my eyes.” Ryujin flirted, knowing how smooth that line was. She grabbed her mug of hot cocoa, taking a small sip so she didn’t burn her tongue.

“You’re such a flirt.”

“Only when it comes to you.” Ryujin winked.

Lia took a deep breath. This was her chance. Everything was good. She could finally tell Ryujin the truth about why she switched schools.

“There’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you.” Lia cleared her throat, as if she was trying to cough her secret up. “About why I’m here now.”

Ryujin nods, offering Lia to continue. Lia’s leg nervously bounced up against the table, catching Ryujin’s eye. She leaned over, and grabbed Lia’s hand.

“Hey,” Ryujin consoled. “I’m not going to judge you, and you don’t have to tell me anything unless you’re comfortable. Okay?”

Lia smiled, wondering how she had met someone this caring. She took a deep breath, and looked into the Gryffindor’s eyes for the green light. Ryujin nodded back, kissing the back of her hand slowly.

“I was a really good student back in Canada.” Lia explained. “I was really popular and I had a ton of friends. Then I met this…this guy. And at first, everything was fine. But then we started going out, and I couldn’t find him at the houses we went to- turns out he was in the bathroom doing drugs. And he’d leave me at these huge house parties- and his friends would try to get me alone. I woke up one morning on someone’s lawn- there were drugs in my system, and I was kicked out. I don’t know how they got there. I know I was- drugged, but they didn’t believe me. My parents sued, and they’re still suing, so I’m here now.”

Before Ryujin could say anything, the overly cheerful waiter was back over with their meals, with a smile plastered over his face.

“Alright! We have the French Toast,” He exclaimed. “And…one order of Smiley Face Pancakes? Do you kiddos need anything else?”

Neither of them said anything.

“Alrighty then!” He answered to nobody. “Enjoy your meal!”

The waiter ran off, leaving Ryujin to look down at the whipped cream smile and the chocolate chip eyes smiling back at her. Lia looked down, wondering if she had lost her appetite or not. She wanted Ryujin to say something.

“Lia?”

The Slytherin looked up at Ryujin’s dropped smile. Her eyes then moved down to her hand- their hands were still intertwined tightly.

“I am so sorry that you had to go through that.” Ryujin shifted in her seat. “The fact that someone had the nerve to do that to you makes me upset.”

“I probably deserved it, Ryujin.” Lia defended.

“Bullshit. No one deserves that.” Ryujin cried out, trying not to make a scene. “He deserves whatever’s coming to him, okay? I promise you that we can keep taking this slow, if that’s what makes you feel secure in our relationship. I don’t want to brush aside your trauma, and what you’ve faced.”

“You…still want to see me?” Lia asked, surprised that Ryujin cared this much.

“Of course I do. The shit we’ve been through doesn’t define us.” Ryujin explained. “I like you. Hell, I _like_ like you. I’ve never met someone like you! But, I want to make sure that you’re okay.”

Lia was overcome with pure relief. She was scared of being with someone ever again, and she knew her therapist told her that one day, she wouldn’t have to hide her story from other people- especially her lovers. Ryujin kept being everything she wanted and needed. It was like unwrapping a gift slowly.

“I’m so gonna fall in love with you.” Lia muttered.

“Sorry?” Ryujin spoke up, curious as to what she said.

“I said you’re sweet.” Lia lied. “Now, hurry up and eat your food. We’re gonna be late for first period.”

⌁☍

Ryujin’s thoughts for the rest of the day were laced with Lia- and the smiley face pancakes, but mostly the Slytherin. She never felt so cared for by another person, especially in a relationship. Her classes that usually seemed tedious went by in a flash as she daydreamed of all the things that she wanted to do with her. Ryujin swore she’d never fall for somebody else again- but she lied to herself. And more importantly, she lied to her roommate. 

But Yeji didn’t mind. In fact, she was actually happy that she wasn’t in the loop for once. She was just waiting to be roped into it.

“Yeji, how do you know if you’re in- you know,” Ryujin stuttered, as the two walked to Algebra. “The L word.”

“Lesbian?”

“No, the other one-“

“…Lesbians?” Yeji asked confused, before understanding what Ryujin meant. “Oh no! You just met this girl, and you’re already thinking about this? A few days ago you wouldn’t even tell me if it hurt when you stubbed your toe!”

Ryujin smiled, stopping at her locker to get her books. 

“She’s everything I’ve ever wanted.” Ryujin awed, putting her other supplies away on a shelf. “Like, I’ve never met someone who treats me so well. I’m just- I’m just worried about her. I don’t think we should be dating just yet.”

“Did something happen?” Yeji pried.

“Well- nothing I feel comfortable talking about.” Ryujin answered, shutting her locker promptly after. “Something just happened at her old school…and I’m worried it’s gonna be hard for us to get like, _physically_ close- which I don’t mind, but-“

“I know. You’re a teenager. You got hormones.” Yeji laughed. “But if you really like her, and if you wanna make this work, you have to take it slow. I’m sure there’s still so much you guys don’t know yet. Does she know about your dad-“

“She doesn’t need to know about my dad.” Ryujin stated, her smile dropping. “There’s some things we don’t say out loud.”

“Ryu-“ Yeji interjected.

“I’m serious, Yeji.” Ryujin threatened. “I don’t want her to look at me like I’m weird. So please, don’t bring it up? Please?”

Yeji nodded, knowing she lost this one. She knew it was a touchy subject for her best friend. Deep down, however, she hoped that Ryujin would be honest with someone other than her. She wanted her to be honest with herself. There were only so many strings Yeji could pull for her best friend- this time this was all on Ryujin.

As the bell rang for their last period of the day, Yeji watched as Ryujin almost leaped out of her chair. She watched her get up, grabbing one of the straps to her backpack. Ryujin looked up, caught in the act. 

“Where are you going?”

“I have that shoot in the studio with the Accidentals.” Ryujin explained. “Come on dude, let go. I mean it. I gotta go.”  
“Does Chaeyoung know that you’re coming to practice late?” Yeji asked. 

“I haven’t been talking to her since practice yesterday.” Ryujin revealed. “And I don’t plan on it.”

“You know she’s gonna bench you if you act like this. And you can’t afford that. She won’t like it if I’m the one telling her.”

“Fine.” Ryujin groaned, opening her phone and texting Chaeyoung.

_Hey! Hope you’re feeling okay. Just wanted to let you know that I have a shoot today after school. I’ll make it quick, but I just wanted to get some drills in before Friday’s game. Do you and Coach have a starting lineup yet?_

Ryujin sent the text, looking at an approving Yeji.

“You’re a good kid. I know that. They don’t.”

“Okay, mom.” Ryujin snorted. “See you at 4?”

⌁☍

Ryujin sprinted across campus, bolting herself down the photo lab hallway. She ran a shaking hand through her hair, stopping to take a deep breath before walking into the studio. She saw a group of kids, all decked out in a shade of blue. She stopped in her tracks as they all turned around. Her eyes could only see Lia. She was wearing a blue cropped top and white jeans, and her hair was in half up, half down. Ryujin felt her mouth get dry. She couldn’t help but always get absorbed by Lia’s beauty.

“Shin Ryujin!” Jihyo approached her, shaking Ryujin’s sweaty hand. “Thank you for accommodating us on such short notice. Do you need a few minutes to set up?”

Lia turned to Jihyo as she talked, which snapped Ryujin out of her thoughts.

“Y-Yes! I’ll need about five minutes!” Ryujin nodded vigorously, watching Lia stifle a laugh. “I won’t be too long.”

Ryujin ran into the studio, throwing her backpack aside and rolling out a black backdrop. She used some cinderblocks to hold the paper down, and began to roll two lights over to the edges of the setup. She grabbed her yellow gels out of her bag, pinning them to the lights. She turned them on, adjusting the intensity and taping down loose wires. Grabbing her camera, Ryujin adjusted her ISO before taking a few test shots.

From outside, Lia was absolutely loving every moment. Ryujin looked genuinely at home in the studio, as if she knew it like the back of her hand. She watched as the Gryffindor weaved around equipment. Watching Ryujin be serious made her even more attractive, it was like watching her mature under the span of fifteen seconds.

“All set!” Ryujin called from inside. “Who’d like to go first?”

Lia raised her hand proudly, earning a smirk from Ryujin. 

“Come on in,” She beckoned, grabbing Lia’s hand and helping her into the middle of the backdrop.

“Is she going to do that with all of us?” Sana whispered to Nayeon, earning a smack on the arm from the older girl. “What? I wouldn’t be complaining…”

Lia watched as Ryujin let go, staring at the girl in front of her.

“Hi.”

“Hi.”

“You look beautiful.” Ryujin blurted out.

“You always say that, even when it’s not true.” Lia shook her head, which made Ryujin frown. The Gryffindor turned to see the other members looking in anticipation as the two talked. She rolled her eyes as she lightly stroked Lia’s arm.

“It’s always true.” Ryujin smiled. “Now, can you help me make you look as pretty as you do in my eyes?”

Lia rolled her eyes, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

“Perfect.” Ryujin joked, getting some serious shots of Lia. “Would it possible to get some shots of you smiling?”

“Would it be possible to see you tonight?” Lia said back, watching Ryujin’s cheeks turn red as the Slytherin’s smile widened.

“Maybe. I have to head to practice after this and convince my coach to put me on the starting lineup for the game on Friday.” Ryujin explained, going over the pictures she just took. “I- uh, I would love to see you there. If you can make it, that is.”

“I can stop by after rehearsal.” Lia told her. “I really want to see you play.”

Ryujin snapped a few pictures, walking over to Lia slowly to show her the pictures. Lia was mesmerized by how good she looked in the yellow lighting, and how dynamic Ryujin’s angles were.

“I…I look beautiful,” Lia stammered, looking up at a smiling Ryujin.

“I tried my best.” Ryujin smiled as the Slytherin wrapped her arm around her neck, pulling her closer.

“Your dorm or mine tonight?” Lia whispered into Ryujin’s ear, watching her eyebrows raise at the question.

“You can come over to my dorm.” Ryujin mumbled, not remembering how her room was plastered in her Harry Potter merchandise collection.

Felix coughed to break the tension, watching the two jump apart. Lia laughed to herself as Ryujin’s cheeks turned red.

“I can take whoever’s next.” Ryujin announced, watching Lia walk back outside as an overly grateful and potentially overworked Jihyo strolled in.

“What’s going on with you and Shin?” Sana asked Lia, who blushed as she sat down against the wall.

“Stop it!” Lia squealed, hiding herself in Ryujin’s varsity jacket, which she had recently become inseparable from.

⌁☍

“Please, Coach- I’ll do anything to be a starter for Friday.” Ryujin pleaded to Coach Park. She stood next to an irate Chaeyeong, as he wrote on his clipboard furiously planning the lineup. She never responded to her text.

“Sir, I don’t think she’s ready-“ Chaeyoung began, earning a scowl from Ryujin. 

“I don’t care. I disagree.” He finally spoke. “You know how important this game is to our alumni. And they’re the ones that fund the scholarship. Ryujin is playing Starting Goalie- the scouts will be there.”

“Coach, if I may-“

“Chaeyoung, I’m not having it. I don’t know what kind of issues that you two have with each other, but get over it.” Coach Park snapped. “I don’t want to have to bring the Headmaster into this. You two need to start acting like teammates.”

“My father will hear about this.” Chaeyoung cautioned.

“Perhaps he can hear about your GPA while you’re at it.” Coach suggested, walking off to run drills with the midfielders.

Chaeyoung hit her lacrosse stick up against the field’s fence in anger, using all of her force as it ricocheted onto the track.

“Hey.”

“Shut up.” Chaeyoung shouted. “I hate you.”

“I’m sorry about Olivia, Chaeyoung.” Ryujin comforted, trying to slowly approach her teammate.

“He always makes exceptions for you.” Chaeyoung lunged at Ryujin, who used her arms to hold her back. She pushed the older girl off of her.

“If you don’t stop, you’re not playing Friday.” Ryujin demanded. “Calm down.”

“Look, Shin- I’m pissed off. Everyone thinks I’m this asshole when in reality, I just want to someone to like me for me.” Chaeyoung breathed out. “And everyone likes you for you. That’s why you don’t get it.”

“There’s a lot you don’t know about me.” Ryujin shook her head. “And what about Mina? I thought you really liked her.”

“Well yeah, but I don’t think she can be serious with me- and that’s what I really want at the end of the day.” Chaeyoung picked up her lacrosse stick, inspecting the damage. “I think you’re really lucky. From what I’ve heard from Yeji, you’ve found someone that has what you really want. Maybe I can experience that one day.”

⌁☍

“Close your eyes.” Ryujin instructed. “Pick a movie.”

Lia’s hands wavered around eight sets of DVDs, finally pointing down on one. She giggled as Ryujin uncovered her eyes with her hands. Lia grabbed her pick, Prisoner of Azkaban, as her mouth dropped.

“No! This one is scary!” Lia whined, getting a laugh out of Ryujin.

“I promise you’ll be fine.” Ryujin consoled. “You’ll be with me.”

“CAN YOU TWO PLEASE GO UPSTAIRS?” Yeji shouted from the kitchen. “Rick and Morty is starting soon!”

Ryujin rolled her eyes, grabbing Lia’s hand as they descended the staircase together. Ryujin held a bag of popcorn in her hand as they got to her room door. She stopped in her tracks, realizing that Lia was about to see a different side of her within the wall decorations of her room.

“Is something wrong?” Lia asked, grabbing the snack from Ryujin. 

“My room is…a little childish.” Ryujin warned.

“I wouldn’t expect anything less.” Lia pinched her cheek, as Ryujin looked down and smiled shyly. “Don’t worry about it, okay?”

Ryujin opened the door to her room, allowing Lia to step in first. Her stomach tied itself in knots, as she waited for Lia to say something.

“Well, my theory still stands.” Lia turned around. “You still are, one hundred percent, my really big dork.”

The Gryffindor liked it when Lia called her that. If it was anyone else, even Yeji, she’d be ready to throw down and start a fight. But there was something about Lia’s playful affection that felt comforting to her. She felt her shoulders relax, as she walked into her room and closed the door behind her. She got her projector out from her desk, aiming it to the ceiling and hooking it up to her DVD player. Everyone said she was old-fashioned for still having one, but she didn’t care. She watched as the main menu popped up and turned off the lights. Lia hopped into her bed, cuddling her stuffed Buckbeak plush and hiding under the covers.

“Ready?” Ryujin asked.

“Only if you protect me from the dementors.” Lia pouted.

Ryujin grabbed the remote, sliding into her bed next to the Slytherin.

“I think you could fight them off on your own,” Ryujin wrapped her arms around Lia’s waist. “But I’ll be right by your side.”

“Always?”

“Yeah. Always.”


End file.
